SitcomsOnline.com News Blog

It's time for another edition of Fri-Yay! That means we will take a look back on some sitcom happenings in recent days or weeks or other fun sitcomy stuff. It's a sitcom lover's paradise! Happy Fri-Yay!

by Vincent

A few weeks ago, I highlighted a series I was really enjoying a lot, Abbott Elementary. In my opinion, Abbott Elementary is easily the best new sitcom. But frankly, it's been a really good year for network sitcoms. And American Auto is another example of this seasons surprisingly great batch of new network comedies.

American Auto comes from Justin Spitzer, who was the showrunner of Superstore. It has a great cast, including Ana Gasteyer, a hilarious TV comedic veteran. And the joke writing is sharp, fresh and funny - and frankly, a bit more biting than many other network comedies of recent times. If you haven't checked it out yet, I highly recommend it. The ratings have been fairly low, unlike the solid breakouts of Abbott Elementary and Ghosts, and I'd love to see it continue to grow and evolve. In some bit of news, Tom Bergeron is guest starring on the show very soon - stay tuned!

Raven's Home, the long-running hit comedy series starring and executive produced by Raven-Symoné, will return for its fifth season on Friday, March 11, at 8:00 p.m. EST/PST on Disney Channel and DisneyNOW. A spinoff of the iconic Disney Channel comedy That's So Raven (2003-2007), Raven's Home follows the hilarious adventures driven by somewhat psychic Raven Baxter (Raven-Symoné) and her son Booker (Issac Ryan Brown), who has inherited his mom's gift to catch glimpses of the future. In season five of Raven's Home, Raven and Booker move back to San Francisco to help take care of her dad after a mild heart attack. Now Raven finds herself parenting her parent, raising her young cousin, and settling into life in her old hometown. Meanwhile, Booker is "the new kid" at Raven's old high school and has to keep his visions a secret from a new group of friends.

Joining the cast for season five are Rondell Sheridan, who reprises his role as Raven's easygoing and loveable dad, Victor, from That's So Raven; Mykal-Michelle Harris (ABC's mixed-ish) as Raven's young cousin, Alice; Felix Avitia (Disney's Gamers Guide to Pretty Much Everything) as Neil, Victor's neighbor and Booker's high school classmate; and musician and singer Emmy Liu-Wang (Andrean Players' Annie) as Ivy, a young neighbor who babysits Alice. Adrienne Bailon-Houghton (The Real), who portrayed Raven's arch-nemesis Alana in That's So Raven, will return in a recurring role as a grown-up version of the character, who is now the principal at Bayside High. Also joining in a recurring role is Marissa Reyes (Spirit Halloween) as Cami, a popular and ambitious girl with a rebellious streak.

Disney Channel has ordered a fourth season of its popular family sitcom Raven's Home, starring and executive produced by multitalented Raven-Symoné. Alison Taylor (Just Jordan) will join the fourth season creative team as executive producer, alongside Raven-Symoné and executive producer and showrunner Warren Hutcherson (Reed Between the Lines, The Bernie Mac Show). Production on season four will commence later this year. Made for kids age 6-14 and their families, Raven's Home is a spinoff of the iconic Disney Channel comedy That's So Raven (2003-2007), which followed the whimsical, somewhat psychic teen Raven Baxter. Now, Raven is a divorced single mom of teen twins, Nia and Booker, and she's not the only one in the family who can catch glimpses of the future--her son Booker has inherited her gift. Just like his mom, Booker can see just enough of the future to try and change it. Hilarity ensues as Raven and Booker try to understand their unpredictable visions while navigating a hectic but loving household that also includes Raven's longtime best friend Chelsea and her son Levi, and Nia's best friend Tess.

The series also stars Issac Ryan Brown as Booker Baxter-Carter, Navia Robinson as Nia Baxter-Carter, Jason Maybaum as Levi Grayson, Sky Katz as Tess and Anneliese van der Pol as Chelsea Daniels.

Nickelodeon has picked up an additional 13 episodes of '90s icon All That, bringing its first season total to 26 episodes. Also announced, is new cast member Aria Brooks from Atlanta, Ga., who is joining the show's talented and diverse cast of comedians. New episodes of All That air on Saturdays at 8:30 p.m. (ET/PT) on Nickelodeon. All That is executive produced by Kenan Thompson (Saturday Night Live), Kel Mitchell (Game Shakers), Kevin Kay (All That, SpongeBob SquarePants, Lip Sync Battle, Lip Sync Battle Shorties, Yellowstone) and Jermaine Fowler (Superior Donuts, Sorry to Bother You). Kevin Kopelow & Heath Seifert (All That, Cousins For Life, Austin & Ally) also serve as executive producers.

Shot in front of a live studio audience, All That stars Ryan Alessi, Reece Caddell, Kate Godfrey, Gabrielle Nevaeh Green, Nathan Janak, Lex Lumpkin and Chinguun Sergelen, who have popularized new characters, impersonations of today's celebrities and new original comedic sketches including "Cancelled with Nathan," Bed, Bath & Beyoncé" and "Marie Kiddo." To date, recording artists the Jonas Brothers, Ciara, H.E.R., JoJo Siwa, Ella Mai, Ally Brooke, Kane Brown, Bryce Vine, Daddy Yankee and CNCO have performed on the show. The series also features appearances from Kenan Thompson, Kel Mitchell, Lori Beth Denberg, Josh Server and Alisa Reyes, who helped make the original series a '90s icon for an entire generation of kids. Guest stars for the additional 13 episodes will be announced at a later date.

Fox 2018-19

Fall 2018

Mondays
8:00PM The Resident
9:00PM 9-1-1

Tuesdays
8:00PM The Gifted
9:00PM Lethal Weapon

Wednesdays
8:00PM Empire
9:00PM Star

Thursdays
7:30PM Thursday Night Pregame Show
8:00PM NFL Football

Fridays
8:00PM Last Man Standing (ALL-NEW EPISODES)
8:30PM The Cool Kids (NEW!)
9:00PM Hell's Kitchen

Saturdays
7:00PM Fox Sports Saturday: Fox College Football

Sundays
7:00PM NFL on Fox
7:30PM The OT (NFL post-game)/Fox Encores
8:00PM The Simpsons
8:30PM Bob's Burgers
9:00PM Family Guy
9:30PM Rel (NEW!)

Unscheduled Mid-season 2019 (new and returning):
New Comedy:
New Drama: The Passage, Proven Innocent
Returning Reality/Unscripted: Beat Shazam, The Four: Battle for Stardom, Gordon Ramsay's 24 Hours to Hell & Back, Hell's Kitchen, Love Connection, MasterChef, MasterChef Junior, Showtime at the Apollo, So You Think You Can Dance
Returning Series: Gotham, The Orville

NOTES: Three new comedies and two new dramas join the lineup. Thursday Night Football will debut in Fall 2018, with Pro Football Hall of Famers Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long and Michael Strahan to headline pregame show. Epic thriller, The Passage, from executive producers Ridley Scott, Matt Reeves and Liz Heldens, will launch midseason. Legal drama Proven Innocent, from Empire co-creator Danny Strong, will debut midseason. Gotham will air its fifth and final season at midseason. Season two of The Orville will premiere midseason. An all-new live musical production of Tony Award, Grammy Award and Pulitzer Prize Winner Rent will air January 2019. A brand-new Cosmos installment, Cosmos: Possible Worlds will premiere spring 2019.

Discuss Fox's 2018-19 lineup. You'll find the official press release there, too...with details on all the new series.

Season two of Disney Channel's hit comedy series Raven's Home is set to premiere with a week of four new episodes, beginning Monday, June 25 - Thursday, June 28 at 9:30 a.m. EDT/PDT, on Disney Channel, in the DisneyNOW app and on Disney Channel VOD. Following the debut week, new episodes will premiere throughout the summer on Tuesday and Friday mornings at 9:30 a.m. EDT/PDT, as part of Disney Channel's GO! Summer that super-serves kids and families all season with new programming and fan-centric off-air events. Made for kids age 6-14 and their families, the series will continue to present funny, relatable, heartfelt and broad storylines about kids, parents, twin siblings and best friends for life. In the second season, Raven Baxter, played by Emmy(R)-nominated comedic actress Raven-Symoné, learns along with the entire family that her son Booker has inherited her ability to catch glimpses into the future. When Booker and Raven's visions collide, it sets madcap escapades into motion for the entire extended family.

The second season will spotlight the multitalented cast in a show-stopping musical episode, with original songs and dance numbers choreographed by Will "Willdabeast" Adams and directed by Paul Hoen (director of over a dozen Disney Channel Original Movies including ZOMBIES and Camp Rock 2, Let It Shine). Season two guest stars include Jonathan McDaniel (That So Raven) who returns as Nia and Booker's dad, Devon Carter; Brian George (That's So Raven) as Dr. Sleevemore; Mike Massimino as Tess' dad, Jimmy; Anthony Alabi as Coach Spitz; Wendy Raquel Robinson (Descendants) as Dream Weaver; and Dylan Martin Frankel as the family's new 12-year-old landlord, Mitch.

Raven's Home, a sitcom for kids and families that brings powerhouse star Raven-Symoné back to Disney Channel to reprise the role of Raven Baxter from the iconic comedy series That's So Raven, premieres Friday, July 21 at a special time of 10:00pm EDT, on Disney Channel, and will be available on the Disney Channel App, VOD and Disney Channel YouTube (12:01 a.m. EDT). The linear debut of Raven's Home will immediately follow the television premiere of the highly anticipated Descendants 2 from 8:00-10:00 p.m. EDT. New episodes of Raven's Home will air Fridays at 8:30 pm EDT on Disney Channel, beginning July 28. To get fans ready and excited, all four seasons of That's So Raven will be available on-demand on the Disney Channel App and VOD Thursday, June 1.

Raven's castmate Anneliese van der Pol also reprises her role of free-spirited Chelsea in the new series, which finds the longtime best friends each divorced with kids of their own. The single moms come together to help raise their children - Raven's 11-year-old twins Booker and Nia, Chelsea's 9-year-old son Levi - in one chaotic, but fun household that often includes the twin's best friend and neighbor Tess. Raven still catches glimpses of the future, but she's not the only one in the family who does - Booker has the same ability. While Booker uses his newly found power to try and make sense of middle school and his new family life, Raven uses her power to help her be a better mom, a great fashion designer and an awesome friend. Hilarity ensues as Raven and Booker's visions collide, but no matter the situation, they figure everything out together as one big happy family.

Also starring are Issac Ryan Brown (black-ish, Miles from Tomorrowland) as overly confident but loveable Booker; Navia Robinson (Being Mary Jane) as independent, no-nonsense Nia; Jason Maybaum (Superstore) as savvy, wise-beyond-his-years Levi; and Sky Katz (America's Got Talent) as Booker and Nia's gutsy best friend and neighbor Tess.

The highly anticipated musical episode of Once Upon a Time aired last night and now next week it is time for the two-hour finale. But before that, ABC is giving us a special. Once Upon a Time: The Final Battle Begins - Join the talented cast and executive producers as they identify some of their favorite moments over the past six seasons, as well as take a look back at their characters' journeys. They will discuss what the show has meant to them personally and to the millions of fans who made Once Upon a Time a hit show on ABC. Additionally in this special, "Oncers" get to ask the cast and producers their most burning questions about the series. Take a look back at the origins, the love and romance, and all the adventures along that way that fans have cherished these past six seasons on Sunday, May 14 (7:00-8:00 p.m. EDT). Afterwards, stay tuned for the epic two-hour season finale, as the final battle has arrived, on Once Upon a Time, (8:00-10:00 p.m. EDT), on The ABC Television Network.

There's still no word on a seventh season, but odds are that there will be one. There could be some sort of "reset" button, but that is still not certain. Once Upon a Time stars Ginnifer Goodwin as Snow White/Mary Margaret, Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan, Lana Parrilla as the Evil Queen/Regina Mills, Josh Dallas as Prince Charming/David, Emilie de Ravin as Belle, Colin O'Donoghue as Hook, Jared S. Gilmore as Henry Mills, Rebecca Mader as the Wicked Witch/Zelena and Robert Carlyle as Rumplestiltskin/Mr. Gold.

Disney Channel has ordered Raven's Home, the That's So Raven spin-off, continuing the story of the award-winning family comedy that resonated with kids, tweens and families around the world. Production on the multicamera series is set to begin this month in Los Angeles for a scheduled premiere in 2017. Starring are the previously announced Raven-Symoné and Anneliese van der Pol, who will reprise their roles as best friends Raven Baxter and Chelsea Daniels. Issac Brown (black-ish, Miles from Tomorrowland) and Navia Robinson (Being Mary Jane) have been cast as Raven's 11-year-old twins Booker and Nia, respectively, and Jason Maybaum (Superstore) will play Chelsea's nine-year-old son Levi. Sky Katz (America's Got Talent) also joins the cast as Nia's best friend Tess.

Geared toward kids 6-14 and their families, the series will pick up with Raven and Chelsea, who are now divorced single mothers raising their two separate families in one chaotic, but fun household full of friends. When one of Raven's kids begins to show signs that they have inherited her trait of catching glimpses of the future, the already hectic household gets turned upside down, keeping even Raven on her toes. As previously announced, Raven-Symoné will serve as an executive producer on the series. Longtime writer/producer partners Scott Thomas and Jed Elinoff (Disney Channel's Best Friends Whenever, Emmy nominees for R.L. Stine's The Haunting Hour) will also executive produce.

Comedian Iliza Shlesinger is bringing her incisive perspective to a new weekly half-hour late-night talk show, Truth & Iliza. Truth & Iliza is getting a six-week run starting Tuesday, May 2 at 10pm EDT and will serve as a platform for Iliza's societal observations and sketches fueled by her opinions as well as in-studio celebrity guest and expert interviews. The show will be centered around a themed question which Iliza will seek to answer using audience interaction, field pieces, commentary and, of course, jokes. Iliza will draw from her decade of stand-up experience to focus on the sociopolitical issues of the day, providing a forum for viewers to discuss everything from the necessary to the inane to the taboo. Iliza recently wrapped up her national 15-city theatre tour - Iliza: The Confirmed Kills Tour. Girl Logic, her first book from Weinstein Books, will be published in the fall 2017. Iliza's scripted web series on the ABC app, Forever 31, has been ordered for a second season, and her third comedy special Confirmed Kills is currently available on Netflix.

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This week, we've got news of a potential Will & Grace revival, Raven-Symone returning to her Disney Channel roots, and news of new DVDs of the ABC series The Middle. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

• The Middle is moving forward on DVD thanks to Warner Archive, with The Middle - The Complete Seventh Season on November 15.
• The fourth season of Lou Grant has been announced, with a scheduled release date of February 21.

Who to Follow: Alfred Hitchcock LLC (Twitter), "Making movies. Making music. Making TV. @mainmanla @theyoungraps @bearonfiremusic @greatindoorscbs"

Claim to Fame: This weekend, we have something a little different, but for Halloween weekend, it seems appropriate: a dead man. Specifically, the dead man is Alfred Hitchcock, though the Twitter account isn't actually is (he died decades before Twitter was a thing), but rather the account of his estate. Of course, he is known as one of the greatest directors of all times and considered the "Master of Suspense." He directed many movies, many of which can be seen this time of the year, but to his TV fans, he brought us Alfred Hitchcock Presents, as well as the follow-up series, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. His legacy has lived on long beyond his death, and there will actually be more to come in the form of an upcoming cable anthology series which will bear his name.

Summertime is almost here! Instead of just reminiscing about your childhood summer adventures, relive the good old days by hanging out with some of your favorite Disney Channel stars. Laugh along with Lizzie McGuire as she competes with Kate, flash forward to the future with Raven Baxter, live a double life with Hannah Montana, and help Kim Possible save the world. During the "That's So Throwback" programming event, your favorite series air every Monday through Thursday and your favorite Disney Channel Original Movies air every Friday from midnight to 2 a.m. EDT all month long in May only on Freeform! The block has Lizzie McGuire at 12 midnight with Hilary Duff, followed by That's So Raven at 12:30am with Raven Symone, then at 1am it is Hannah Montana with Miley Cyrus and animated comedy Kim Possible at 1:30am. Movies on Friday nights in May are Twitches starring Tia Mowry & Tamera Mowry on May 6; Get A Clue with Lindsay Lohan on May 13; Stuck in the Suburbs with Danielle Panabaker & Brenda Song on May 20; and the 1999 hit Smart House with Katey Sagal.

Boy the way Glenn Miller played! That line can mean only one thing: All in the Family! The classic '70s sitcom is going to make its way to Logo this Sunday (May 8) on Mother's Day from 10am-4:50pm. It's the mother of all sitcoms, so what a perfect fit! The episodes will go in order starting with the very first episode, where Archie's "no big deal" attitude leads to a huge argument with his son-in-law on topics ranging from Archie's prejudices, problems with the nation's government and Mike atheism. Episodes airing are Meet the Bunkers, Writing the President, My Aching Back, Archie Gives Blood, Judging Books by Covers, Gloria's Pregnancy, Mike's Hippie Friends Come to Visit, Edith Has Jury Duty, Archie Is Worried About His Job, Gloria Discovers Women's Lib, The First and the Last Supper, Gloria Poses in the Nude, and The Saga of Cousin Oscar. No word yet if and when All in the Family will air regularly on Logo in block format, likes its other sitcoms. So stay tuned you meatheads!

ABC will launch the 2015-2016 season in mid-September with a stable of returning hit shows and five new series to join the schedule. Dancing with the Stars will kick off its 21st season on Monday, Sept. 14. As we first reported, Beyond The Tank will air Tuesdays at 10:00pm but now we know the date, it begins Sept. 29, until Wicked City takes over the Tuesday 10:00pm time slot, beginning Oct. 27. 20/20 will begin its new season on Friday, Sept. 11 at 10. Dancing with the Stars premieres Monday, Sept. 14 from 8-10pm, while a special Dancing with the Stars: The Results will air Tuesday, Sept. 22 from 9-11pm. Castle will have its season premiere on Monday, Sept. 21 at 10. The first new series launch will be new comedy The Muppets on Tuesday, Sept. 22 at 8, followed by the season premiere of Fresh Off the Boat. The following Tuesday (Sept. 29) will have the launches of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Beyond the Tank from 9-11pm. Onto Wednesday, the entire line-up will have their season premieres on Wednesday, Sept. 23 from 8-11pm: The Middle, The Goldbergs, Modern Family, black-ish, and Nashville. TGIT returns the next night on Thursday, Sept. 24 with Grey's Anatomy, Scandal and How To Get Away with Murder. Friday, Sept. 25 will see the season premieres of Last Man Standing at 8 and Shark Tank at 9, as new sitcom Dr. Ken will premiere the following week (Oct. 2) at 8:30pm.

Onto Sundays, a Once Upon a Time special will air at 7pm leading into the season premiere at 8pm, followed by two all-new drama launches from 9-11pm: Blood & Oil and Quantico. The season premiere of AFV, with new host Alfonso Ribeiro, launches on Sunday, Oct. 11 at 7 (most likely an encore of Once's season premiere will air Oct. 4 at 7). And finally, as previewed at the top of this story, new drama Wicked City will premiere Tuesday, Oct. 27 at 10 following the 4-week run of Beyond the Tank.

It's official! Raven-Symoné was named co-host of The View, it was announced live yesterday on the ABC talk show. After 37 appearances as guest co-host, the actress/producer joins the panel alongside moderator Whoopi Goldberg and co-hosts Nicolle Wallace and Rosie Perez effective immediately. Raven-Symoné is widely known for her role in the Emmy-nominated comedy series That's So Raven for Disney Channel, which garnered her three NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Performance in a Youth/Children's Series/Special, two Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards for Favorite Television Actress and a Young Artist Award for “Outstanding Young Performer. She was named producer for the series' fourth season, which aired in 2007. The popular actress' recent credits include guest roles on ABC's hit comedy black-ish, as well as featured roles on Empire and the upcoming animated feature film, Animal Crackers alongside Ian McKellen, John Krasinksi, Sylvester Stallone and Danny DeVito. She starred in ABC Family's sitcom State of Georgia, the critically-acclaimed classic sitcom The Cosby Show, for which she received the Young Artist Award for Exceptional Performance by a Young Actress Under Nine, and ABC sitcom Hangin' with Mr. Cooper for four seasons. In 2012, Raven headlined the hit Broadway musical Sister Act, produced by Whoopi Goldberg. She has also appeared in film opposite Eddie Murphy in Dr. Dolittle and Dr. Dolittle 2.

ABC Family says goodbye to 2014 with its "That's So Throwback" programming block, featuring Disney Channel classic comedy series Lizzie McGuire, That's So Raven, Even Stevens, and original movies The Cheetah Girls and Halloweentown. "That's So Throwback" airs Monday, December 29th, 2014 through Friday, January 2nd, 2015, from midnight to 2AM ET/PT. There is no better time for nostalgia than the end of the year, so why not spend those late nights catching up on the favorite shows of your tween years? Life was simpler when all you had to worry about was whether or not Lizzie was actually going to find Aaron Carter, if Luis beats those mean school bullies at their own game, or if The Cheetah Girls will get their record deal. So instead of reminiscing about your Disney Channel friends or going online to watch clips, hang out with ABC Family and watch the real thing instead. You'll see stars like Hillary Duff, Raven-Symoné, Kyle Massey, Shia LaBeouf, Adrienne Bailon, Sabrina Bryan, and the legendary Debbie Reynolds.

When NBC's Friday line-up returns on Friday, Jan. 16 with new episodes, it will have some timeslot changes. The network will move struggling rookie drama Constantine to the 8:00pm hour, prompting to move news-magazine Dateline NBC to 10:00pm instead. Grimm will still anchor the night at 9:00pm, though, so it is a switch between Constantine and Dateline. The move will be for 5 weeks only, as Constantine has only 5 episodes left to air. No word yet on what will air at 8pm beginning Feb. 27. Based on the wildly popular DC Comics series "Hellblazer," Constantine is a seasoned demon hunter and master of the occult John Constantine (Matt Ryan, Criminal Minds) specializes in giving hell... hell.